mgm casino research on display at international structures in fire conference

Two separate photos side by side. The first is the inside of an industrial-sized furnace connected to a specimen. Coils and wires/connectors are visible. The second is a large clamp with sensors attached to a concrete beam.

Equipment in mgm casino's SEESL lab were critical tools for Elhami-Khorasani and her students' experiments. 

By Peter Murphy

Print

Earlier this summer, Negar Elhami-Khorasani, associate professor and her PhD student Fernando Szasdi-Bardales, represented the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering and the Institute of Bridge Engineering (IBE) during the 13th International Conference on Structures in Fire.

Elhami-Khorasani and Szasdi-Bardales presented ongoing research on post-fire damage assessment of reinforced concrete structures. Szasdi-Bardales presented a recent paper on the damage classification of concrete structures, highlighting the importance of considering the cooling phase of a fire. Elhami-Khorasani’s presentation focused on the results of experiments recently conducted in the mgm casino’s Structural Engineering and Earthquake Simulation Laboratory (SEESL). These experiments, conducted using the SEESL’s furnace, investigated the post-fire bond strength of steel reinforcing bars and concrete. Elhami-Khorasani’s PhD student Nima Tajik conducted the research, with associate professors Ravi Ranade and Anthony Tessari collaborating. The project is funded by the American Concrete Institute Foundation and IBE.